OFFENDERS in Dorset completed 80,000 hours of unpaid work under community sentences.

The work was carried out as punishment from the courts for crimes instead of prison sentences.

Dorset Probation service said 619 offenders completed the 80,000 hours of unpaid work last year, which is equal to about £500,000 worth of work.

Chief officer of Dorset Probation John Wiseman said: "Prison is necessary to punish offenders and protect the public from the most serious offenders.

"But community sentences are often a more effective tool for cutting re-offending than a short-term prison sentence.

"We are very proud of running robustly supervised and rigorously enforced comm-unity orders with unpaid work requirements.

"Our dedicated staff ensure that demanding packages of unpaid work are available to sentencers. We aim to contribute to a safer, cleaner Dorset."

About 2,000 offenders begin a community sentence under the supervision of Dorset Probation each year.

Unpaid work carried out in Dorset has included bringing derelict areas and buildings back into public use such as clearing church yards, repairing park benches and removing graffiti.

Clean-up campaigns in Dorset are often in conjunction with Dorset Police's Safer Neighbourhood Teams. Last year offenders worked on the Rodwell Trail and the Wipe Out Campaign in Weymouth.

The figures came as the Government launched a new report called Community Sentencing, Reducing Re-offending, Changing Lives.

It claimed that community sentences were succeeding in reducing offending and providing better value than sending someone to prison at a cost of £37,000 a year.

The Dorset Probation area received £450,000 from a £40 million Government cash injection in March to ensure magistrates have tough community sentences at their disposal.

Mr Wiseman said: "We welcome this report which endorses the work we carry out in the community."